textproduct: Quad Cities

KEY MESSAGES

- Colder conditions still on track for the weekend along with mainly dry conditions.

- Trending a bit milder mid-week with a clipper type low pressure system bringing the next chances for precip in the Wednesday-Thursday time frame.

SHORT TERM /THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT/

Issued at 153 PM CST Fri Feb 20 2026

Tonight...Cloud cover a bit of a challenge tonight with post-system subsidence and drying trying to erode them into the evening period. May try to trend this way, but then steering flow in the cloud layer will then try to advect more lower clouds out of MN back acrs portions of the DVN CWA later tonight after midnight and into early Sat morning. This may have a bit of an impact on overnight low temps acrs the northern half and new snow cover areas, keeping temps up in the teens to near 20. If they don't make it, currently advertised low temps especially in the northwest, won't be cold enough. Enough LLVL pressure gradient to keep west to northwest sfc winds going 8-12 KTs overnight, and wind chills toward dawn may range from the lower teens southeast to low single digits in the northwest.

Saturday...Water vapor imagery was indicating a nice little vort max just east of the 4-Corners area, and steering patterns will advect this wave right acrs the CWA Sat morning. There will be the lift, but moisture for light snow or flurries marginal at best. For now will keep unmentionable POPs, but if we have the morning stratocu there could be some flurries acrs portions of the fcst area. Otherwise there will be a mix of clouds and sun helping temps up into the lower 30s where there is little to no snow cover, and the 20s in the snow cover areas of the northwest.

Sat night...Another wave of bigger size will dig into a deepening upper trof base acrs the western GRT LKS and OH RVR Valley this period. Again marginal at best moisture associated with this system, but it may have a better shot of producing light snow or flurries in the eastern CWA later Sat night into Sunday morning. Have trended in the grids by over-ruling the dry NBM and putting at least some slight CHC POPs in the far eastern CWA for now.

LONG TERM /SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/

Issued at 153 PM CST Fri Feb 20 2026

Sunday...Another re-enforcing sfc ridge gradient will make for a blustery chilly day with northwest winds of 15 to 25 MPH and temperatures in the 20s. If we have some lower clouds, the action upstairs on the western flank of the longer wave trof may wring out some flurries in spots.

Monday through Thursday...Latest medium range ensembles show less amplitude with the mid week steering flow acrs the central CONUS, but still some northwest tilt that may allow for a clipper type low to ripple along similarly oriented LLVL baroclinicity for the next more organized precip chances by midweek/Wed into Thu time frame. Plenty of time to assess, but there may be some precip type issues, especially at night if this system can make it acrs portions of the local fcst area. There still looks to be some thickness increase for sfc temp improvement or moderation into the mid week, with 40s and even some 50s having a chance to occur.

AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z SATURDAY/

Issued at 540 PM CST Fri Feb 20 2026

An MVFR stratus deck, mainly along and north of Interstate 80 late this afternoon, will slowly dissipate this evening as drier air filters in from the west. A period of VFR and lighter winds will be seen tonight, before another mid-level trough crosses the area after sunrise Saturday morning. This system should only bring higher clouds, with a very low chance (less than 10%) of producing flurries, so have left any precip out of TAFs for now. Otherwise, another bout of MVFR ceilings will be possible for CID and DBQ Saturday.

DVN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

IA...None. IL...None. MO...None.